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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29032716">Loving Her</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherWriter140/pseuds/JustAnotherWriter140'>JustAnotherWriter140</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kung Fu Panda (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Awkward Romance, Best Friends, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Feelings Realization, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Light Angst, Po is conflicted, Possibly Unrequited Love, Romantic Fluff, Super light emotional hurt/comfort</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 04:26:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,228</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29032716</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherWriter140/pseuds/JustAnotherWriter140</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"But isn't love more important than that?"</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lei Lei &amp; Po (Kung Fu Panda), Po &amp; Tigress (Kung Fu Panda), Po/Tigress (Kung Fu Panda)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>34</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Loving Her</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>The inspiration for this story came from the lack of Po and Lei Lei moments in the third film...</p><p>I think that Lei Lei being an orphan is official, seeing as her parents were neither seen or mentioned; also, Tigress was the one who was keeping her safe during Kai's raid on the panda village. Anyway, I’m in love with Po, Tigress, and Lei Lei's family dynamic and I really hope to do more with it in the future. </p><p>Now that I'm done with that, please enjoy the story! </p><p>POST-KFP3</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Cuddles…” Lei Lei suddenly whispered in the darkened room. “Do you love Stripy Baby?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The question took Po by surprise. She’d been quiet for the majority of dinner, asleep for dessert, and had appeared to still be asleep as Po was carrying her to Tigress’ room. Not to mention, she’d asked the question very clearly; it was her first full sentence, for all he knew. Po briefly inwardly panicked as Lei Lei stirred slightly, shifting in his arms.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Where’d you hear that?” Po asked softly. He was inwardly freaking out, his mind racing through tons of different answers to give if anyone happened to hear him; especially Tigress.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lei Lei gave a small shrug of her shoulders, her blue eyes shimmering in the darkness. She now seemed to be wide awake, staring at Po unblinkingly. She obviously wasn’t going back to sleep without an answer, and Po knew that Tigress would kill him if Lei Lei started fussing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, uh,” Trying to stall a young child’s question was useless, and Po knew that. He’d been around enough children to know that if they want to know something, they’ll find out. Lei Lei, unfortunately for Po, was just as persistent as any other toddler he’d ever met; if not more. “Yeah, I do. She’s my best friend.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you wanna kiss ‘er?” Lei Lei asked with an innocent smile, clasping her small hands together.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Po stopped dead in his tracks. His blood ran cold, the small smirk faded from his face, and all of his muscles tensed. Lei Lei seemed greatly confused by his reaction, and she tilted her head to the side. “I don’t really think she’d let me, kiddo,” Po commented with a forced chuckle, attempting a quick escape from the subject.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But do you?” Lei Lei repeated, her icy-blue eyes opening wider.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sighing lightly, Po looked up from the baby panda in his arms and scanned his surroundings. He couldn’t see anything around, nor hear any movement. “Well, I guess if I had Shifu’s permission and Tigress’ consent, then maybe…I guess I…I…I…maybe. Probably.” Po admitted, his voice dropping to a lower volume with every word. He shook himself, snapping himself out of some sort of fantasy. “Even then, a relationship still wouldn’t work.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why?” Lei Lei inquired.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Po thought for a moment, inwardly scolding himself for getting himself into this situation; a situation in which he’d now have to get himself out of in a relatively short amount of time. “I’m not sure if you’ll understand this, but Tigress and I both have a duty as warriors to protect and serve the country. That pretty much means that we couldn’t commit to each other completely, or any other person for that matter, because we wouldn’t want to be put in the situation of having to choose between saving each other or saving the emperor.” His ramble ended, and he gave the baby panda a smile, saying, “Does that make sense?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But isn’t love more important than that?” Lei Lei questioned, and Po was immensely shocked at how clear the toddler’s speech had suddenly become. He felt as if he’d missed something. “My mommy always said so.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Po didn’t really feel that he was fit to answer the little girl’s question. He was single, and as much as he hated to admit it, he’d never even courted a girl before. His romantic life was practically nonexistent, and it would be staying that way for the foreseeable future. Perhaps Li was better suited for this question.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Po briefly thought of retrieving his panda father, but decided against it; Li and Mr. Ping had left quite a bit ago, and were most likely halfway down the thousand steps. Asking Li to come all the way back up to the palace, only to explain something to a toddler would be rather inconvenient for all of them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lei Lei was still very much awake, eagerly awaiting an answer to her previous inquiry. Po sighed, setting her down on the small cot that Tigress’d placed beside her own bed. Lei Lei sat somewhat stiffly on the bed, leaning forward anxiously. She was definitely not going to sleep without an answer. Po sat down on Tigress’ bed, and he was now facing the baby panda.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s, uh,” Po thought for a moment, recounting the small bits of information that he’d heard about romance from his fathers. “Well, I guess so.” He paused. ”Yeah…yeah, I guess it is. Your mom was right.” Lei Lei smiled brightly, and Po returned it with a small smirk, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. “But I, as the Dragon Warrior, have to stick to what I think is right.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Stripy Baby isn’t right?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, no, no, no,” Po said quickly, waving his hands back and forth. “She is! I don’t really know how to say this, but,” He took a deep breath, rubbing the back of his neck nervously with his right hand. “We’re not right. We’re great friends and awesome partners in battle and stuff, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask her for anything more than that.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Po could tell by the look on Lei Lei’s face that she didn’t understand. He’d never expected her to, of course, seeing as she was a toddler. She could hardly wrap her head around the concept of numbers; how was she supposed to understand the conditions of being a defender of China?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be putting all of this on you,” Po apologized, sighing into his hands. “Let’s hope you won’t remember this in the morning, huh?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He began to wonder when he’d started to feel this way. When did he start to think of his best friend in this manner? Though, as he tried to pinpoint a time and place, he came to a shocking conclusion; it’d been since the moment he saw her. He’d never seen anything more perfect; the embodiment of beauty and talent, a seemingly flawless example of what a warrior should be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Recounting more memories as hundreds of thoughts whirled around his brain, Po remembered something Mei Mei had once said to him; presumably one of the times in which she’d caught him staring at his best friend for a little too long.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Someday, you will find your other half.” She’d said quietly, resting a friendly hand of reassurance on his shoulder. “It just might take you a little longer than the rest of us, that’s all.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How long would that be?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If he were being honest with himself, he couldn’t see himself just walking up to his best friend and professing his affections towards her. It’d probably scare her. She’d been practically confined to the grounds of the Jade Palace for her entire life, and the only people her age that she was consistently in contact with for the majority of her time at the palace were the Furious Five.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>None of which had she any romantic interest in, nor did they have any romantic interest in her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>To say the least, learning that her best friend was practically head-over-heels in love with her would be a shock.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d feel pretty guilty if he were to put her in that situation. She was closer to him than anyone else in her life, and telling her how he felt could destroy all of that. Po knew that she required the kind of closeness in her life that they shared, and it would be put in jeopardy if he were to come clean.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sure, they were both adults, and she’d probably get over it eventually.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But he wouldn’t; he was certain of that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Cuddles?” Lei Lei suddenly whispered. Po blinked, and he realized that he’d been staring off into space, his eyes aimlessly set on the far right corner of the darkened room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?” Po asked, plastering a fake smile onto his face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You look so sad.” The toddler bluntly observed, watching Po’s jade eyes glisten in the pale moonlight that pierced through the rice-paper walls. She reached up with her small hand, and placed it on Po’s cheek.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m not, sweetie,” Po lied, clearing his throat. He was now holding the little girl’s hand in his own. He didn’t want to lie, but he also didn’t want her to ask any further questions. “Just tired.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lei Lei narrowed her eyes, almost as if she were trying to read his thoughts. She seemed somewhat unsatisfied, but she was becoming too tired to ask more questions; releasing a yawn, she closed her blue eyes, and began to fall to the side.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, time for bed.” Po told the toddler with a soft chuckle, watching her rest her head onto her pillow. He lifted himself from Tigress’ bed, pulling the silken blanket up to Lei Lei’s shoulders, and kissed the little girl’s forehead. “Goodnight sweetheart.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Upon exiting Tigress’ room, Po slid the door shut, and leaned against it slightly; not enough to fall through.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Closing his eyes, he let out a heavy sigh of relief, happy to be freed from Lei Lei’s interrogation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He reopened his eyes a second later, sensing a sudden presence in the barracks. He didn’t even have to look; he knew that she was standing in the hallway, and she was looking at him. He turned, and his suspicions were correct.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was standing in the hallway, maybe ten feet away from him. Moonlight bounced off of her golden hanfu, causing the fabric to glow dimly in the darkened space. The silvery light also complimented her vibrant orange fur greatly; she had a luminous outline surrounding her slim form. Her eyes were beyond description. They took his breath away from the moment he saw them, and never failed to do so ever since.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Is she asleep?” Tigress mouthed as she approached Po, who nodded, his signature crooked grin on his face within a second.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course she is. C’mon, I’m not totally useless.” He joked through a semi-nervous laugh.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Stopping at her room door, Tigress stared at Po, who appeared to be somewhat uncomfortable. He was shifting his weight every few seconds, and his jade eyes were darting around the hallway every so often. Po watched as Tigress looked him up and down suspiciously. “Are you alright?” She finally asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah! Yeah, why-why wouldn’t I be?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” Tigress admitted. Po’d hoped that she’d leave it at that, but he should’ve known better. She took a step toward him; the narrow hallway already had them close to each other, but their chests were almost touching at this point. Whenever they were this close to each other, their height difference was extremely noticeable; Po was only a few inches taller than her, but it was still a significant difference to him. Tilting her head to the side slightly, Tigress said, “You’re preoccupied.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was about to tell a joke; one about how close they were, and how out of context it could be seen as if one of the five or god forbid Shifu walked in. However, he decided against it after realizing that it would scare her off. Despite how nervous he felt, he didn’t want her to leave. He found himself enjoying the sensation of his heart beating more rapidly than it normally did, and the way his breathing hitched whenever she spoke.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What’re you thinking about?” She asked, shifting her weight onto her right leg.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It took every ounce of willpower he’d ever had to keep himself from telling her everything right then and there. He was rather proud of himself for remaining silent, but keeping things from his favorite person wasn’t exactly the most fun thing in the world. He shrugged, saying, “Nothing much. Just stuff.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tigress looked at him with a strange expression. Upon observing her face further, Po began to think that it looked sad. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>All of a sudden, his upper body was met with a familiar sensation as he felt Tigress wrap her arms around him, hugging him close to herself. Her head was buried into his right shoulder, though unlike their previous embraces, her grip grew tighter every few seconds.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After a moment of silence, Po whispered, “Can I…uh…” His arms hovered over her waist, fully ready to reciprocate the hug; only if she were to give him her consent, of course.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he felt her nod against his shoulder, he wasted no time in returning the gesture. Po embraced her in a soft hug at first, giving himself time to grow accustomed to how she felt underneath his arms. However, he only needed a few seconds to do so, as he hugged her tightly soon after. Po buried his face into her neck, sighing in content. This was their first mutual hug, and he found himself loving every aspect of it; he didn’t want to let her go.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They stood in an embrace for longer than they’d intended, and were both rather embarrassed when they pulled apart. They both retreated into their respective rooms, much to both of their dismay. They both knew that it would be the best of both worlds if they were to refrain from cuddling, as painful as it was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And as Po lay in bed, blankly staring at his ceiling, he realized that loving her was going to be the hardest thing that he’d ever have to do.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This story is actually pretty old, and it’s been waiting around to be posted for a fairly long time. I finished it around two months ago, but decided against posting it right away because I wanted to have a story ready in case I hadn’t posted for a while and couldn’t think of anything. (Such as today; when I posted one of my drabbles, I promised a story within the following two weeks of that date. I am a writer of my word, therefore, here is said story.)</p><p>In addition to that; yes, I know, more emotional angst. I’ll try my best to lay off on the angst for a while, because the last thing the world needs right now is more angst, but it’s all I can ever seem to write. I may need to take a break for a week or two, though, because my drafts are nothing but angst. (Although, if you guys don’t mind all angst, then that’s a different story.)</p><p>I don’t really have anything else to say, so…until next time! Have an amazing day, everybody!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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